Ancient Midnight
by Suzanne Cross
Summary: After the showdown with the Ancient and the Order, the Warriors believed their job was done; that the Ancient had been killed. Well they were wrong. The Ancient is very much alive and is currently wandering the Alaskan wilderness naked, freezing, and thirsting for blood. He's just about to surrender himself to the sun when he comes across a little cabin in the woods.
1. Chapter 1

He was so cold.

For what seemed like years, that's all he'd known, blistering, mind numbing cold.

Not for the first time, he cursed the day that he and his seven brethren set foot on this measly planet. The blizzard he was caught in now was sure to finish what the avalanche hadn't. Since that night, the night when he'd fought with Breed males including one of his own offspring, he'd been starved for blood and hiding from the deadly sun in caves like the beast he was.

He should have died that night. It would've been less painful than the agony he was in now. Maybe he should just end it all and surrender himself to the dawn.

No, he immediately rejected the thought. He had to live, he had to get revenge on his kin for imprisoning him in that hell hole where he'd suffered nothing but pain and torture for decades.

Yes, the thought of his grandson's head on a silver platter had his mouth stretching in an eager smile, barring his enormous fangs.

He wanted revenge and the only way to do that was to survive. Somehow, he would make it out of this frozen wasteland and hunt down his enemy.

But first he had to find some kind of shelter out of this blistering cold.

Lifting his head was a chore, one that cost him a great deal of energy. Feeling his head bob with his weakness, he searched the night with his sensitive eyes. For a moment, there was nothing as his vision blurred, but when he shook his massive head to clear it he could make out in the distance a fiery glow.

A fire, he realized. Where there was fire there was warmth.

And where there was warmth, there would be humans, filled with hot blood.

The creatures gums throbbed with his need for blood, the _dermaglyphs_ that covered his body pulsed with color. Saliva built in his mouth, he was thirsty.

Eager to get out of the cold and for the blood that awaited him, he stumbled towards the structure he soon realized was a wooden house.

Trying the door, he found it unlocked. Why not? The human lived in isolation, free from the worries of thieves or murderers. The creature crept into the residence, searching for the owner of the house.

No one was there.

But the fire still burning in the fireplace told him that they'd be back. Soon.

With a growl of anticipation, the vampire crouched in the corner of the room to wait for his meal to return.

Aliannah McCain let out a laugh as her pet danced happily in front of her, eager, even in this chilling weather, to play.

Eskimo ran in circles around her legs, the young male wolf cared not that his master's arms were full of firewood and was too cold to do much of anything. All he wanted to do was frolic in the snow.

Shaking her head, Aliannah nudged the canine away from her legs and started on the short trek from the small outbuilding, where she stored firewood, and back to her house. Dressed in an oversized winter parka, jeans and boots, Aliannah trudged through the snow, at ease with her surroundings.

Her mind wandered to the phone call she'd gotten from her father a few hours ago. Duncan McCain was a strong-willed man, a man who never took no for answer.

Well, except when it came to his wife and daughter that is. Then he was nothing but pure putty.

Her father had called to check on her, as his only daughter he was worried about her all alone in the wilderness without any protection. As much as she loved her father, she couldn't help but feel smothered by his protectiveness.

She wasn't helpless, as she'd told him a thousand times. Aliannah had been taught all sorts of martial arts and how to use a different array of weapons by the best in the business. Her father and her oldest brother Malcom.

With their training, Aliannah could kill a man in twenty, if more, different possible ways.

She was a big girl now, and she could take care of her self.

Eskimo's barking broke her out of her thoughts, she looked up with a smile as the rambunctious wolf streaked by her and towards the house. Apparently, he was up for a race.

Shaking her head with a chuckle, she picked up her speed, eager for a piping hot cup of cocoa and a movie in the living room.

As she approached in the door, she frowned at Eskimo's raised hackles. The usually care free wolf's teeth were bared in a fierce snarl, his amber eyes fixed on the door.

Goosebumps raised over her skin as she eyed the door. Something wasn't right, not just from her pet's reaction, but her own senses were telling Aliannah that something was wrong.

Dropping the firewood, Aliannah reached behind her back and under her heavy coat for the .45 strapped to her back. She never left home without it.

Opening the door, she entered the house, her gun extended, aim steady. Inching farther inside, she glanced around, seeing no signs of an intruder.

But Eskimo's growling continued and the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, she felt as if she was being watched.

"I know you're here," she said loudly. "Come out now and I won't shoot you."

No answer. But she definitely felt a presence here.

A creak of the floor boards behind her, froze her blood into ice even her heart seemed to freeze. She held still, waited to see if she heard it again. She didn't.

She turned around slowly, eyes wide with what she might find.

The door stood wide open, just as she'd left it. There was no one there.

Frowning, Aliannah slowly stalked back to the door with her gun still raised. Peering outside she saw no sign of any life. No foot prints. Nothing.

That's when she heard the growl.

Whirling around she came face to face with a beast. Eyes glowing and with huge fangs, there was no mistaking what it was.

Vampire.

The Ancient pounced on the human female, ignoring the horrified shriek that flew from her mouth and the clatter of her weapon as it skid across the floor and out of her reach.

Desperate for blood, he threw back the hood of the coat and shoved cloth aside so he could find his target. Easily thwarting her attempts to fight him off, the vampire freed her jugular from the coat and sank his aching fangs into her throat.

Sucking at the blood that welled immediately from the wound, he barely noticed that the female had stopped screaming, though he did not care. All he wanted was the sweet blood that was currently flooding his mouth.

She didn't taste like a regular _Homo sapiens_, humans usually had a coppery taste to them. But this one did not. Her blood tasted sweet, incredibly sweet. Groaning, the Ancient tugged her closer, sucking even more frantically at her throat.

The scent of her flooded his nostrils, peaches and cherry blossoms. It was intoxicating. He felt his body come to life with the animalistic instinct to mate, to take. In his naked state, the female had to feel the evidence of his hunger for her body.

An animal's snarl startled him, lifting his head, he saw a large wolf haul itself at his leg. Its large, sharp teeth sunk into his flesh.

The Ancient growled in rage and annoyance at his meal's disturbance.

He'd had enough of wolves.

Shaking the wolf free, the vampire didn't notice the female going for something in her boot.

Once his leg was free of the wolf's jaws, he proceeded to feed.

Only to have a knife jabbed into his leg.

The Ancient roared with pain and fury, letting the female out of his grip as he reeled backwards. Grabbing the hilt of the blade in hand, he yanked it out of his flesh in a swift movement.

Rage rolled off him in waves, how dare this human, a female at that, stick him with a small insignificant blade.

A hiss emanating from his lips, the Ancient turned to face his prey and froze.

The female had retrieved her firearm and was now pointing it, with the steadiness he expected of a warrior, between his eyes.

Shocked at how quickly she had moved, his eyes went to her face.

And received another shock.

Her eyes were awash with an amber glow, not unlike his own, the pupils receding into vertical slits.

The female smiled, baring a set of fangs, "One more step, mother fucker. And you're history."


	2. Chapter 2

The Ancient couldn't take his eyes away from the female before him.

He could've killed her in an instant, but his shock and curiosity stopped him from doing so.

His eyes followed her movements as she lifted her free hand up to her neck. Without un-steadying her weapon, she removed the hand and snarled in anger at the blood that stuck to her fingers.

Eyes glowing furiously, she glared at him, "How dare you drink from me, you bastard!"

He didn't respond, he expected she hadn't wanted one.

The female took a step closer, then another, her eyes narrowing, she studied him over the steel of her firearm, "I should kill you for what you've just done. Give me one reason I shouldn't put a bullet between your eyes."

He thought about telling her a lie, anything in order for her to lower her weapon and give him another chance at that delicious blood of hers. But he had a feeling this female wouldn't be fooled by a lie. Besides lying was a coward's trade, he was a lot of things, but a liar he was not.

Chuckling, the Ancient said, "There isn't a reason to keep me alive. Actually, you'd be better off killing me."

The female didn't seem to react to his words, she didn't pull the trigger nor did she lower her weapon. She just stood there, staring at him, studying him.

They stood like that for minutes, each of them watching the other. Mistrust clouding the atmosphere.

To pass the time, he studied the female's looks. For centuries, he'd seen many attractive females, but this one had to be the most beautiful. Her Breed physical changes were starting to fade, a sign that her anger was slowly easing. As the amber glow seeped from her eyes, he noticed that her eyes were a shade of grey tinged with blue. Her complexion was fair, free of any blemishes or scars, he recalled the silkiness of the skin at her throat. How it felt when he'd sunk his fangs deep inside her.

She was tall for a female, he noticed, though compared to his seven feet she was petite. He studied her body posture and the way she carried herself. Confident, he decided, and powerful, those were the words that came to mind as he gazed upon her. She wasn't frightened of him, wasn't horrified at what he'd just done to her. No, this female's first reaction had been fear, but only for an instant. As soon as her surprise wore off, anger and outrage had taken its place.

He respected her for it.

The female must've came to some conclusion about him, she lowered the weapon to her side, though she didn't put it away. She hadn't killed him, even though he'd given her a wide open opportunity.

But why?

Obviously sensing his confusion, the female's lips curved in a smirk, "Just now, if you'd have begged for your life, I would have gunned you down. But you gave me a straight forward answer, there was no lie in your words. You really gave me the advice to kill you, something no other would have done in your position."

The female went to a nearby desk and looked at him over her shoulder, "I'm going to put this down now. But if you take one step closer to me without my say-so I'm sicking my dog on you and this time she won't go for your leg, but something much more crucial." She eyed his sex to clarify what body part she was talking about. "Then I'll shoot you for sure. We clear?"

The Ancient nodded and the female set the weapon down.

He could've pounced on her then, could have killed her right then. But he hesitated, he was curious about this female, he wanted to know more about her.

His eyes followed her path across the room, to the open door that she'd shut, as she removed her coat and hung it on a rack and back to stand in front of him. She eyed him, and his _dermaglyphs_.

She wore a long-sleeved white shirt, that had a low collar and revealed the swell of her breasts. Enticing as they may be, they weren't what had captured his attention. The tiny birthmark on the top of the swell of her right breast, marked her as a breedmate, but the _dermaglyphs _that ran up from her breasts and up her collarbone to the back of her neck marked her as Breed.

"What are you?" he asked.

An eyebrow rose, "I thought you'd be smart enough to see that for yourself."

"I know what you are. But how can it be? The Breed consists of only males."

"Well, mostly males. I'm the only female," she turned and went to add more wood to the fire.

"How?" he asked again.

She sighed from her crouched position in front of the fire, turning on her haunches she jerked her head towards the couch, "Sit down. And, please, use the blanket on the back to cover yourself." She shook her head and turned back to the fire, "Not that it isn't a great body, it's just kind of distracting."

Anxious to hear the explanation behind her existence, the Ancient allowed himself to be ordered around and sat.

The female stood and went to a nearby chair that sat directly across from the couch he sat upon. She wanted to be face to face with him. As she sat, her pet came to her side and laid down loyally at her feet.

Without taking her eyes from his, she reached down and scratched idly behind the wolf's ears. "Before I answer your questions, you've got to promise that you'll answer mine when I'm done. Deal?"

He nodded.

She sat back in her chair and folded her hands over her midsection and looked at him thoughtfully, "Do you believe in miracles?"

His answer was immediate, "No."

Chuckling at his quick reply she said, "Yeah, me neither. I leave all that to my parents." Sighing she began, "My father is a Gen-One by the name of Duncan McCain."

"Irish mother," he concluded.

She nodded, "That's right. Now, my father was a Warrior before he met my mother here in Alaska. She's Inuit and the local medicine woman in a village of shapeshifters. Wolves," she clarified.

"So your mother is a shapeshifter."

She shook her head, "No, actually she isn't. Her father and grandmother were, as was her elder brother, but she didn't inherit the shapeshifting gift. But she did still carry it through her veins."

Laughing a little bit, she shook her head, "My parents think I'm something special. I mean they'd already had three sons and nothing out of the ordinary about them, full second-generation Breed a few years later, I come into this world with my _dermaglyphs_ and itty bitty fangs, craving blood and food. My parents automatically think I'm some kind of miracle child; I mean I'm the only female Breed ever in existence. I think it was my mother's odd bloodline that caused my birth. How many breedmates do you think have shape-shifting blood running through their veins?"

Her eyes went to the fire and gazed into the dancing flames, "I'm a breedmate and Breed. I can go out in the daylight, but I'm more deadly during the night. I crave blood but my body can sustain food." She turned to look at him, "So in a sense, I'm neither Breed nor breedmate."

"Is there anything else?" he asked. It all seemed too simple; too open and shut.

Lacing her fingers in front of her, the female nodded, "I'm one-hundred and two years old, so I can live for a long time without ingesting the blood of a Breed male. Instead of just inheriting my mother's breedmate gift and the ability to change into a wolf from her family, I also gained the power my father inherited from his mother as well. Unlike male members of the breed, I did not inherit my mother's coloring, instead I take after my father."

She chuckled, "Other than that, I'm just you're average friendly neighborhood vampire."

The joke went right over his head as she'd suspected it would.


	3. Chapter 3

"So," Aliannah began as she folded her hands behind her head and crossed her legs, "what's your story?"

When he only frowned at her she continued, "You're an Ancient, aren't you? I thought all of them were dead. Why aren't you?"

The Ancient scowled, a growl rising in his throat. The story of how he'd survived the slaughter of his brethren only to be imprisoned by his own grandchild wasn't one he was too proud of. But he had given his word that he would answer her questions if she answered his. He was a monster, but he was an honorable one.

"My son hid me away before the battle with the newly formed Order. I was to remain in a catatonic state until Dragos could come back and release me. He never came."

As she cocked her head to the side, she studied him, "Then how did you get out? I mean, you obviously didn't stay there since you're sitting here before me."

"A little over half a century ago, my grandson released me from my slumber. But I was just imprisoned again, in a facility where he kept me starved for blood and in constant pain from UV lights. There, he forced me to breed on countless Breedmates to produce an army of Gen-Ones. Many of those Breedmates were killed in my blood lust."

He glanced over at the female to see how she was taking the news. Her mouth was slack and her eyes were a bit wide as she stared at him with her big grey eyes. "You mean to tell me that you've been forced to have sex with unwilling Breedmates for about fifty years? And your own flesh and blood has been creating an army of super-vampires in secret?"

The Ancient nodded.

He followed her movements as she put a hand to her brow and rubbed at the skin between her eyes with her forefinger and her thumb, "Jeez." She straightened and he saw the confusion in her eyes, "Then how did you end up in Alaska? Naked? Out in the cold? You escaped."

"The Order found my grandson's facility and he was forced to move it. There is one here in Alaska, but I managed to escape from the transportation vehicle they had me contained in."

Aliannah remembered something and she wagged a finger at the Ancient, "Wait a minute. I remember that there were reports of a few wolf attacks in a little town not far from here. That was you wasn't it?" Shaking her head her eyes narrowed in disapproval, "You killed humans."

She had no right to judge him, the Ancient thought to himself with his eyes narrowing at her. "I was starved for blood, I couldn't control myself."

"And the hunter?"

The Ancient shrugged in reply, "He stumbled upon my daylight resting spot. He did not heed my growls of warning and proceeded into my lair. The human was a fool, he deserved to die."

His eyes widened in surprise when the female slapped a hand to her forehead and groaned, "You don't kill people just because they're stupid! If everyone did that there would be no men left on this planet."

The Ancient frowned at her statement, "That is not true at all. Many males are highly intelligent, not all males, human or Breed, are dim-witted."

Aliannah rolled her eyes at that, "It's sarcasm, pal. Anyways," she continued, "what happened next? How did you end up here?"

This female is bizarre, the ancient vampire said to himself before he continued with his tale. "The Warriors came up here, they'd apparently learned of my existence somehow. They chased me down and we fought. During the struggle I was attacked by a dozen wolves and a young Breed male and their combined weight caused us all to fall over a cliff and buried in a mountain of snow. The Order believe me to be dead, but I will not be killed so easily. I must achieve my revenge on my accursed grandson for the torture he put me through for decades."

"Hm, so you just wandered here after the fall hoping for a meal?" She chuckled and rested her cheek on the back of her hand with a smile on her lips, "Must've been hilarious when I turned out not to be human, huh?"

He nodded, "It was quite a shock."

The female sat forward in her chair, laced her fingers together, and rested her elbows on her knees. Her eyes were very serious as she asked him, "So what's next? Where do you go from here?"

"I need to track down my enemy and go and exterminate him."

She chuckled, he found her humor irritating, "Woah there, partner. Not so fast. First off: do you even know where your grandson is?"

He thought about it, "No. I can't be sure, though, I'm pretty sure he's not in Alaska anymore."

"You're going to have a tough time finding him then. You can't go out during the day, and even at night you're at a disadvantage. You're a freakin' giant; you stick out like a sore thumb." She ticked off reasons on her fingers, "Then there's the need to feed; you're going to have to hunt pretty often, it'll slow you down. If the Order catches word that you're alive, then they'll be gunning for ya' and if the Order finds out, your grandson might as well. Add to that the fact that you're naked and you have no way to get out of Alaska without going on a bloody rampage, and you're screwed every way but straight."

He listed to her point out the dangers he faced in his quest for revenge and had to admit she made some valid arguments. "What do you suggest?"

Grinning, she pushed herself out of the chair and came to stand before him. Pointing her thumb at her chest she declared, "I'll help you."

The Ancient blinked up her, "Why would you do that? You gain nothing?"

She scoffed at that, "Your grandson is threatening the Breed and all of humankind, right? My father was a Warrior; he drilled the beliefs and duties of the Order into my head since I was a little girl sitting on his knee. I believe in protecting my race and if that means helping you, then I'm in."

Putting out her hand she said with a bit of a southern twang, "You with me, partner?"

The Ancient just stared at the female's hand for a moment. He didn't know if accepting this female's help was a good decision or not, but she was right; he just wasn't used to this world and she was. He needed her help, whether he wanted it or not.

He stood and ignored the blanket that fell from around his hips to pool on the floor, then enveloped her smaller hand in his bigger one, "Partner."

The female beamed up at him as she gave his hand a couple of enthusiastic pumps, "I'm Aliannah McCain. It'll be a pleasure working with you Mr. Ancient. Now," she bent down, careful to avoid looking at his groin, and retrieved the fallen blanket. Pushing it into his arms, she whirled around and started off towards the back of the cottage, "Let's find you some clothes."


	4. Chapter 4

The Ancient followed the female into the back of the house and watched curiously as she pawed through a dresser.

"My dad's pretty close to your height. He comes here a lot, and sometimes leaves clothes here. These won't be an exact fit, but they're better than nothing, right?" With a laugh, she pulled a large pair of sweat-pants out of the bottom drawer. Setting them aside, she then dug out a rather large black t-shirt.

She held the pants up against the Ancient's legs, studied them a second before nodding in approval. Shoving them into his arms, she pointed to the small room adjacent to the bedroom. When the vampire only stared at her, she waved her hands at him, "Shoo. Go change."

He growled at her, how dare she order him around.

Setting her hands on her hips, Aliannah glared up at the Ancient vampire, "Look, you can either put those on or not. But, do you really want to remain in that state, in this weather?"

Frowning, the vampire looked down at his nakedness and remembered how the freezing cold had stung against his flesh when he was outside. It was warmer in this female's domain, but there was still a chill in the air. With a grunt of resignation, the Ancient dropped the shirt and proceeded to step into the pants.

With a nod of approval that he was dressing, Aliannah left him in the guest room and made her way to the kitchen. Dealing with a hostile and blood-thirsty alien sure could make a girl hungry.

He found the female in the tiny kitchen, humming some private song as she stirred something on her stove. The wolf at her feet briefly lifted its head to give him a good look, before going right back to its nap.

She glanced up and surveyed him clothed. "The pants are a little too short and the shirt a bit tight," she mused. "But other than that, they'll do just fine. Plus, you're not naked anymore."

He didn't reply, just watched her curiously with his slightly glowing amber eyes. She was intriguing; not because she was the only female breed in existence, but her personality itself was confusing.

He'd broke into her home and attacked her, he'd sunk his fangs in the soft skin of her slender throat and fed off her delicious life blood. She should be terrified of him, the monster, even by Breed standards. But the puzzling creature had sat him down and had revealed so much personal information with him, a stranger. She'd offered to help him in his quest, he reminded himself, and now she was standing there preparing a meal completely at ease around him.

Noticing his eyes on her, Aliannah glanced up, "What? Is there something on my face?"

The Ancient studied the face in question. No, there was nothing on that flawless face, no imperfection. She was stunning. "No."

"Hm," she commented before she returned her attention back to the pot simmering on the stove. "If you want," she began without turning back to him, "you can sit down at the table. When my food's done, I'll sit there too and we can discuss our plan of action."

He simply nodded, still trying to process this enigma of a woman. But he did as she asked and took a seat at a small round table and proceeded to study her back as she continued to cook.

After a few minutes, she removed a bowl from a nearby cupboard and poured the contents of the pot into it. She set the steaming bowl on the table before going to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. With the water in hand, she took her seat across from the other-worldly being.

Spooning the first bite of the chicken soup into her mouth, Aliannah sighed at the delicious richness of it. She took a few more bites before pushing the bowl aside so that she could focus her entire attention on the alien vampire before her, "So, do you you have any idea where your grandson is now?"

The Ancient thought it over, and finally shook his head, "No. I was kept either in a cage or in a truck. I was never aware of where I was being kept."

"Hm," she commented. "That could be a problem then. I doubt a male that has been building an army of Gen Ones for fifty years won't be found in an ordinary Dark Haven. He'll probably won't be under any sort of database, at least, not with his real name anyways."

Since she merely seemed to be talking to herself and not him, the Ancient didn't bother to reply.

"If this bastard has been collecting dozens of Breedmates over the years, he has to have connections somewhere. He can't find all these girls by himself." She was silent for a moment, collecting her thoughts, he assumed. "If we can find his allies, we might just be able to find him."

She looked up at him with those big, blue-gray eyes, "What do you think? Anything to add? Or do you have another suggestion or something?"

He shook his head, since he didn't have a clue where Dragos was or who is allies were, he doubted he had anything helpful to add to her line of thoughts.

She sighed with annoyance, "Geez, this sure isn't going to be easy." Then all of a sudden her eyes widened, as if she suddenly just thought of something. Turning in her chair, she read the time on the clock on the stove and let out a curse.

In a hurry, she finished her soup quickly and stood to put her dishes in the sink.

"Is something wrong?" he asked her.

She went to find her shoes, calling out to him over her shoulder, "I just remembered; I was planning on going into town tonight. But due to _somebody_ breaking into my house, I sort of forgot."

Reappearing in the living room, now wearing her boots, she went to the coat rack and shoved her arms into the poofy arms of the big jacket.

"What are you going to town for?" he asked suspiciously.

Catching the suspicion in his voice she glared at him as she zipped up, "I need to feed, you idiot. I haven't in the last few nights and now I need to more than ever. If I plan on feeding you more, I'm going to need to more blood."

Aliannah missed the surprise that struck the Ancient's face since she turned away to rummage through a drawer.

She was going to keep providing him with blood? Even after he took quite a bit from her by force? Did she even know what it meant that he'd drunk from her vein?

"You're going out to feed from a human male?" he asked her, a weird pressure in his chest.

She pulled a pair of keys and gloves from the drawer and turned to frown at him, "No, from a dog," she answered sarcastically. "Of course from a human, I'm not going to bind myself to some other male. I don't want a mate right now."

He opened his mouth to point out that since he'd drank from her, he was now, technically, her mate. But before he could speak, she glanced at the clock again and quickly said, "I've gotta go. I'll be back in a few hours. If you want, you can watch some TV. See ya'." Then she was gone.

A few moments later, an engine started outside and he listened as it faded off into the distance.

The Ancient just sat at the female's table, unsure what to do now that she was gone. The image of the female locked in the arms of another male flashed through his mind, her mouth on another's throat, and he gritted his teeth at a sudden rush of fury.

Ignoring the lengthening of his fangs, the Ancient wondered why it would bother him so much that the female would seek to drink from a human.

_Because she's mine. _The beast inside him whispered with a barely restrained, jealous rage.

The Ancient ignored the voice. It didn't matter that he'd taken blood from her. He'd fed from many Breedmates over the last fifty years, so the blood bond couldn't really be considered sacred to him.

With a growl of irritation, the Ancient thrust himself from his seat and proceeded into the living room. He would attempt to work the television as he awaited the female's return.


	5. Chapter 5

After a period of frustratingly trying to figure out the confounding television, the Ancient finally managed to get it to work. He settled down on the couch and proceeded to try to find something to watch that he didn't find completely idiotic.

He settled on the human news, one that covered events throughout the country and not just in this cold state. He watched in boredom as an attractive human talked of murder and politics, then started to zone out and his mind wandered.

What was the woman doing now? he wondered. Aliannah, he mentally clarified, her name is Aliannah. Probably drinking from the vein of a young human male, perhaps even using him for some sexual relief. And the thought of that absolutely infuriated him.

Breed males were possessive by nature, and they are half human. Try being a full blooded, Ancient Breed male and you got a highly territorial, violent vampire on your hands.

Ignoring the news completely now, the Ancient rested his head back against the top of the couch and stared up at the wooden ceiling in thought. Why was he acting like this? Over the centuries he'd fed from hundreds of females, both human and breedmate alike, but he'd never felt this possessive about any of them. And the fact that he did troubled him. He was a centuries old warrior, who'd slaughtered and pillaged humans across the globe and here he was in a jealous rage over a female.

What made her different from the rest? Could it be that he only found her mere existence as the only female Breed interesting? He didn't think that was the problem since Aliannah had told him her life story mere minutes after they'd met. His fascination with her as a specimen should've almost faded by now.

However, he did find her puzzling. Her actions towards him confused him, everything she'd done had been beyond his expectations. And the frightening part was that he found himself wanting to see what else she might do to surprise him.

Closing his amber eyes, the Ancient brought the female's image to his mind and mentally scrutinized the image from the top of her head to the soles of her boots. And just like that he was aroused.

Clenching his hands into fists, the Ancient cursed. He wanted her, he wanted Aliannah and all that glorious body of hers. He wanted to see her Breed eyes glow up at him again, not in rage though, but in pleasure.

With a growl that would've done a bear proud, the Ancient thrust himself from the couch and went to the door of the cabin. Not bothering to find shoes, the Ancient went outside in the freezing snow. He sighed when he found an ax and some wood that needed chopping, he needed something to take his mind off of her.

Picking up the ax, which weighed hardly a thing to him, he brought it down in a satisfying thwack, splitting a log. Ignoring the cold around him, he picked up another and began to work.

Aliannah started up her snow machine and sped off into the night, not even bothering to look back at the tiny bar and grill she'd just left behind.

The man she'd also left behind in his truck would wake from the hypnotic sleep she'd put him under any minute now. The only thing he would remember was that they'd gone to his car for a little make-out session and that she'd nibbled on his neck a little bit. The next morning, the place where he fangs had pierced would closely resemble a hickey.

David Graham was his name and he was sort of her boyfriend. David was thirty-two and an Alaskan State Trooper that lived not too far from the bar. Aliannah had been feeding off of David for six months now and she let him consider her his girlfriend.

She would probably have to drop David soon though, she reminded herself. He was getting a little impatient and he'd asked her when they'd be able to take the next step in their relationship.

Aliannah had only said it would be soon, which was a lie.

It wasn't that she wasn't attracted to David. He is a very handsome man and nice, but how would she explain the_ dermaglyphs _that nearly covered her entire body? Tattoos? Tattoos didn't change color. And what about her eyes and fangs in the middle of intercourse? Those would be even harder to explain away.

Which means, she came down to the point, she'd need to find another Host and let David down easy.

She was somber as she thought of her surprise house guest and the fact that she was technically spoken for now. Her gloved hand went to press against the part of her neck where the Ancient's fangs had bitten into her flesh. A blush spread across her cheeks as she remembered the feel of him pulling at her vein. She'd never had anyone feed from her before and she was surprised at how erotic it was.

Speaking of erotic, she thought tongue-in-cheek, she was going to have to keep her distance from her roommate. The attraction she felt for David was nothing compared to what the Ancient did to her libido. When she'd bent down to get the clothes out of the drawer, she'd been seriously tempted to give his naked self a good look from the excellent view from the floor.

Aliannah sighed, it wasn't like the Ancient would be interested in her anyway. He'd been alive for centuries and had probably boned more women than she'd care to think about. She was sure that he'd been with far prettier and more feminine women through his years. Just face it girl, she told herself, you're nearly six feet tall and pretty much a tom-boy. What would he want with you?

Feeling a little sorry for herself, Aliannah pretty much zoned out for the rest of the drive back to her home. Once she pulled into her shed and locked up she started back towards the house, yearning for the warmth of the fire, and maybe a cup of hot chocolate, inside.

She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the Ancient out in the yard hacking at firewood without a coat or boots on. Taking a moment to admire the nice pile he had already completed, she jogged over to the vampire.

"What the fuck are you doing?! It's freezing out here and your dumb ass is out here without a coat or shoes! Put that axe down and get your space ass back in the house, you idiot!"

The Ancient lowered the axe, but did not drop it. He glared down at her in annoyance, "Don't speak to me like that."

Her temper rearing its ugly head, Aliannah got up on her toes and got up in his face, "Like what? Like an idiot? I'll stop talking to you like one when you stop acting like one, you dunce!"

Aliannah watched as the Ancient's glowing amber eyes, with their slit-like pupils, narrow dangerously and she was starting to believe that she might have gone a bit too far. But then he did something that surprised her, his eyes lowered from hers and fixated on her lips.

Feeling the blood rush to her face, she giddily thought to herself, Oh, boy.

As if he could, and he probably can, hear her thudding against her sternum, the Ancient eyes left her lips and went to her throat, where the pulse in her neck danced to the beat of her pounding heart.

He studied her jugular for a long, silent moment before looking up to meet her eyes.

Aliannah opened her, suddenly dry mouth to say something, anything. But before she could croak out a word, the Ancient spat out a curse, turned and stormed back into the cabin, slamming the door behind him.

With a open mouth, Aliannah only stared after him.

"What the hell just happened?"


End file.
